(WSVN) - He was awarded a Bronze Star. He has top secret security clearance, but this veteran who has devoted his life to serving his country has a BOLO out for him, and he can’t get a passport. Why? It’s time for Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
If you want to know what it’s like to dedicate your life to your country, meet Gary Cornelious.
Gary Cornelious: “I joined our forces in 1979. I was a field artillery. I’ve been to Germany, Bosnia, Albania, Kosovo. Nineteen months in Turkey.”
U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Cornelious spent 24 years in the Army and the past 20 years in the Defense Department.
Gary Cornelious: “It’s been great. I wouldn’t change for nothing in the world. It’s like a band of brothers.”
Gary always used his military ID to travel from one country to another. In 2014, he decided to get a U.S. passport. The trouble began.
Gary Cornelious: “I applied for my passport. I was denied, and they told me they need more information.”
Gary headed to the Miami passport office with everything from his birth certificate to his military documents.
Gary Cornelious: “And then I found out it was an interrogation instead of just information.”
Turns out some crooks from Somalia had gotten two passports using Gary’s name, and the State Department suspected Gary of trying to open a third passport to sell.
Gary Cornelious: “He told me that, people sell passports. They sell them for about $20,000, starting price, and he thought I sold my passport. And I’m like, ‘No, I wouldn’t do like that, for me or my country. I got more pride than that.'”
Gary left without his passport, blamed for what criminals had done to him, and about to find out the U.S. government was now after him.
Gary Cornelious: “I didn’t realize that they put a BOLO on me.”
What makes if even more outrageous is Gary’s security clearance.
Gary Cornelious: “It’s a NATO top secret clearance from when I was in Turkey, because we deal with nukes.”
Gary then took some ROTC students to a military base and found out about the BOLO.
Gary Cornelious: “They had me handcuffed at the post, at the front gate for three hours.”
Once the military discovered Sgt. Cornelious was a victim and not a criminal, they released him, but the BOLO remained in effect.
Gary Cornelious: “I said, ‘Why don’t you call in and clear it up?’ They said, ‘We can’t clear it up, because Miami passport issued it.'”
The result: at any minute, Gary can be picked up.
Can’t travel because TSA would arrest him if he tried to board a plane.
All this done by a country he’s served for 44 years.
Gary Cornelious: “Pretty sad because I got a Bronze Star. I got a top secret clearance, and I’m, like, being treated like this. It’s pretty sad. Excuse me.”
Clearly, Sgt. Cornelious is entitled to a passport. Isn’t he, Howard?
Howard Finkelstein, 7News legal expert: “You can deny an American a passport if they are a convicted drug dealer, owe child support, income taxes or are a threat to national security. Gary is none of these. This is a ridiculous mistake by the U.S. government, but fighting them is expensive and can take years. That’s why we ask people to call us.”
We started with the State Department.
They offered to set up an appointment for Gary to apply for a passport. But we didn’t want to wait for who knows how long it could take to get it.
We then contacted Sen. Marco Rubio’s office.
Gary Cornelious: “I just couldn’t believe it, because I’ve been trying for eight years.”
With the combined help of the State Department and Sen. Rubio’s office, Gary got his passport almost immediately.
It’s like he was set free.
Gary Cornelious: “Well, besides traveling, I can go to any military base, and I won’t get stopped at a military base. That’s the biggest relief.”
Everything worked out for Sgt. Gary Cornelious after his call to Help Me Howard.
Gary Cornelious: “It was like a dream come true. And it would never been done if it wasn’t for you, sir.”
Glad we could help, Gary.
And more good news. Gary says the BOLO on him has been lifted, finally.
If you qualify and can’t get a passport, contact your local congressman or congresswoman’s office or your U.S. senator. They can be helpful.
Feel like it would take an army to solve your problem? Don’t have the troops to succeed? Mobilize and call us. We’ll have a BOLO for your information, ’cause we are here to serve.
With this Help Me Howard, i’m Patrick Fraser, 7News.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
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